Man accused of groping 12-year-old girl at bus stop

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Police are looking for a man who reportedly groped a 12-year-old girl at her bus stop Friday afternoon in Southeast Portland.

“She came home crying,” said the victim’s mother, Selmira Guavara. “I don't want another child to go through this.”

Selmira Guavara
(Photo: KGW)

Guavara said her daughter, who was waiting at a stop at Southeast 127th Avenue and Stark Street, told her the man had been riding his bike around the area and sat down to talk with her, before touching her chest.

“He told her, ‘I'll see you on Monday, Maria.’”

Guavara filed a police report but felt that wasn't enough. She took Monday off from work to meet her daughter at her bus stop. As it rolled up, she noticed a strange man riding around on his bike.

“My daughter came out and pointed at him and started screaming, ‘There he is!’ There was too much traffic so I couldn't get him,” said Guavara. “A person was really nice and pulled over and asked me if I was OK and I said, ‘chase the guy,’ and he went and took a picture of the person."

Guavara shared the picture with police, who are now looking for the man. They consider him a suspect.

The David Douglas School District sent a letter home to parents about what happened. They also warned of another incident that happened Monday morning. A different student said she was walking to school when a strange man began following her in his truck, near Southeast 102nd Avenue and Burnside. Then the girl reached an adult and the man drove away.

Police are investigating both cases. In the meantime, Guavara said her daughter is no longer taking the bus.

“I don't know how to explain how I feel,” said Guavara. “That person had probably been watching my daughter for a while.”

"I worry about those kids, obviously, you know and the stress that the parents go through. I don’t know them personally, so there's nothing I can do, but yeah, it kind of raises the alarm that we need to watch out for our own a little more," said parent Thaedra Adams.

If you have any information on either case, you're asked to call Portland police at 503-823-3333.